Vapor-Phase Alkylation of Phenol with Tert-butyl Alcohol Catalyzed by H3PO4/MCM-41

The catalytic performance of Al-MCM-41 containing 5-35 wt% H3PO4 was studied for the vapor phase alkylation of phenol with tert-butyl alcohol(TBA)from 383 to 493 K.4-Tert-butyl phenol was produced as the main product with moderate selectivity.The product distribution depends on the reaction temperature,number of acid sites,and the Br(o)nsted to Lewis sites ratios.A lower molar ratio of reactants (TBA/phenol = 2)and a higher space velocity facilitated the production of 4-tert-butyl phenol.The influence of various parameters such as temperature,reactant feed molar ratio,feed rate,and time on stream were investigated for conversion yield and product selectivity.